All Creation
by Just a little coy
Summary: One young girl's life is destroyed in a bid for power, another man's is destroyed in the pursuit of knowledge. Two strangers and their struggles to avenge their past and salvage their future. OCs.
1. Chapter 1

I doubt I will ever get tired of the view of my town, well it's not mine yet but it will be. This view is also my own, standing alone atop the cliffs that protect the Southern half of Utai Village. In my opinion it is much bigger than a village though, heck it could practically be called a city now. The quarry around the corner to the West side of the cliffs allowed the village to get where it is now. The huge supply of granite made it east to build the buildings and the walls that protect the Northern half of the Village. But, before there even was a quarry Grandpa saw the potential of this town and decided that he wanted it. Gramps was, what you would call, an outlaw, or gangster, or bandit, or whatever else, and wanted a good place for the Kisaragi family. So he and the family came in and did just that, taking over the town with less than legal means.

But when dad took over, he changed how things operated, being the big softie that he is. He changed the gang to a private security business, calling it Kisaragi Security. So instead of extorting people for protection money, he has a tax that he uses to provide protection for the town, essentially being mayor or sheriff or whatever. And, after he created this 'legal' business, a mining company moved into town and hired us to protect quarry workers. There were even train tracks put in that go straight form Vale to here. So the village expanded from there and why Utai will be mine, eventually.

From up here I can see the entire village, beyond the stone walls protecting the Northern half, and deep into the forest. Sneaking away to climb the cliffs has become my new favorite hobby, even if dad always complains about it after. Staring out over everything, I like to think that I can even see the city of Vale from here, just on the edge of the horizon. I've always wanted to visit Vale at least once to see what a real city is like, how things are inside the walls of one of the four kingdoms. But then dad starts grumbling lame excuses like; 'it's dangerous away from the family, too expensive,' or 'you'll just get arrested for stealing or causing a fight.' Pft, like I'd let myself be caught. I'm the best there is in Utai, well except for Jessie I suppose, but he doesn't count being my teacher and all. Then he goes on with stuff like, 'why do you want to leave me and your home?' with a stupid pouty face. Then I have to explain that I just want to see different places, then he teases me about being an aloof child, that's when I get annoyed and leave to go climb something. If anyone is a child it's him that's for sure.

Which is the reason why I am sitting here now. Gazing out from the top of the cliffs to clear my head, and enjoy the view too. Having been here so long the sun was starting to get low in the sky, tinting the village in a yellow hue. Knowing it is just stupid to climb in the dark, I got up from my seat and did some stretching. After I tightened my headband, to keep my shoulder length, straight black hair out of my face, I moved to the edge and began the decent back into the village.

* * *

At the bottom I dust myself off and head straight back home, knowing dad probably sent Jessie to find me by now. As I walk through the streets, the people heading home or still out finishing what they can before night falls greet me as I pass by with waves, nods, and smiles. I return them all even knowing they only do so just to stay on the families good side, not all that different than the kids at school.

About halfway home I spot a familiar face across the street. He is tall and svelte, with short brown hair, and sun kissed skin. As usual he was wearing his boring black suit and white undershirt. "Hey Jessie!," I call to him catching his attention, and as he walks over I continue, "I see you are still fetching things for the old man I see."

When he reaches me he replies, "you know he sends me to find you because he worries about you."

"Yeah yeah," I wave off the concern and proceed to teasing. "So when I am in charge, will you be my lap dog as well?"

He just sighs and shakes his head, "c'mon, let's head back," then turns and starts back to the house. As I follow I look at the back of his jacket at our family crest. It depicts a water serpent that is trapped inside a round crystal. Dad said it is some kind of protector of Utai, but I think Gramps just made it to look cool.

Growing bored, I decide to continue bothering Jessie, "hey Jessie."

"Yeah?" Looking back to me over his shoulder.

"You know when I'm boss, I won't let you wear that same boring suit everywhere," I say with a grin.

"For the last time Yumi I will NOT wear a dress!" Jessie clearly annoyed with this reoccurring topic.

"C'mooooon, you would look so pretty," I whine. "All you would need is some make-up and a wig," which he just ignores, strutting along with his arms crossed. "Gah, fine," changing strategies, "do you at least wash that suit everyday?"

Rolling his eyes he replies, "I don't wear the same exact uniform everyday, I have many different sets."

"Seriously? You have copies of the same outfit that you wear everyday?" I say, adding in a tone of disappointment.

"That is why it is called a uniform," he says slowly like I'm an idiot. "It is what a 'professional' wears to work."

"Professional my butt," ignoring his tone. "A real professional wears something that does not hinder their effectiveness, like a stiff suit for example."

Jessie turns his head to me with a mischievous grin. "Okay, how about a deal then little miss professional?"

I narrow my eyes in suspicion to this 'deal,' "go on."

His grin grows as he elaborates, "I will change my uniform IF, you wear a dress to school starting tomorrow."

"No," I answer immediately, "there is no way I am wearing a dress to school." Jessie starts laughing at my defiance of dresses. "Besides, how could I cover the beauty that are my legs," gesturing to my mid thigh khaki shorts.

He just laughs harder at this and points out, "you know your boots go up to your knees covering like, half your legs right?"

I notice we are nearly home, but I still need to defend my wardrobe. "That is why I wear belly shirts to make up for it," gesturing to my olive green t-shirt that stops at my belly button.

"Pft, whatever you say kid," he scoffs and stops at my door and gestures inside. "Just go talk with your father."

I turn my nose up at him and enter the house with exaggerated gestures. You could probably consider my house more of a mansion actually. The entry way is large with a huge staircase in the center leading to the main office where dad works, and the halls to the left and right lead to bedrooms. The doors downstairs lead to various other rooms like the living room, study, dining room, kitchen, etc. Jessie closes the door behind me from my grand entrance and moves past me and up the stairs.

I follow after and at the top he knocks on the large double doors to dad's office to announce my arrival. "Mr. Godo, your daughter is back," then opens the door to push me inside, and again closing the door behind us both.

The office is large and full of old things that old men like. Leather chairs and hardwood coffee table off to the side, in front of a mantle place. Book shelves on the other side full of leather bound books and antique nick-knacks. And in the center, right in front of a large window to the back gardens, a large office desk cluttered with papers. Behind the desk in another leather office chair is the current leader of the Kisaragi family.

"You made it back a bit earlier than usual, the sun is still in the sky, or well just barely," Godo says with a gruff voice. He is a larger man, tall and wide. Back in the day when he still had muscles, he was probably quite intimidating. Now you can tell he does not leave his desk much with the lack of bulging muscle and the addition of a bulging gut. He has short, slicked back, black hair, brown eyes, and beige skin, colors that I got from him. People have said we look a lot alike, but I definitely do not see it. Especially because I am only about a third of the size of him. I just think people are trying to butter up the old man, saying he is as pretty as me. "So," he continued, "where did you run off to this time?"

"I just went for a walk to get your nagging out of my head is all," answering with a shrug and acting casual.

"So you just happened to walk straight up a cliff-side?" Jessie interjects.

I turn to shoot a glare at him, "and how do you know that huh?"

"The dirt on your gloves and boots," he replies coolly.

"How many times do I have to tell you to not climb those damn cliffs Yumi!" Dad yells at me.

I turn back to dad, "dunno, probably about a hundred or so. If you say it another hundred times I might actually remember," my reply dripping with sarcasm.

"What do I need to do then? Cut off your fingers? I know you would just climb any fence I would put up." Dad continues to scold me, "one of these days your going to fall and your head will get smashed open like a melon."

I just roll my eyes at his exaggerations, "I know those cliffs like the back of my hand, and even if I do slip I use my semblance to keep me tied to the rocks."

"That is not a good thing! You are using improper climbing equipment and your unsupervised."

"My semblance rope is twice as strong as anything they can make and I have my knives to use as anchors."

"Throwing knives and shuriken are NOT proper climbing equipment," Jessie interrupts again.

I just wave him off, "that is not the point anyway."

"That is the ENTIRE point we are making Yumi," dad says.

"MY point is," I tell him. "I can't stay locked up inside these walls, I want to go out into the world."

Dad sighs and puts his head in his hands, "just stay off the cliffs Yumi."

I throw my hands up in exasperation and storm out saying, "I'm going to eat dinner." Pushing past Jessie and slamming the door shut.


	2. Chapter 2

The days pass with as much monotony as watching the second hand move around the face of a clock. I go to school during the week where they force feed the four basic subjects of history, English, maths, and science. Only fun classes are survival and combat, for when our frontier village gets attacked. And, of course there is the supplementary combat taught by dad's right hand man Jessie. Still, I'm seventeen, well trained, and all I want is to see someplace new! But no, I am caged in behind seven meter high, granite walls by my dad. It's just depressing thinking that I am going to be trapped in this one place my entire life. Lately when I began to feel this way, I would escape to the cliffs where I can get the feeling of freedom. But for the past couple weeks, I've avoided it trying to placate my father. However, it is not working, hell even Jessie is starting to agree with me.

I lie in bed trying to get to sleep, but my thoughts won't let me. The only thing I can think of that could help is to get some fresh air. I get dressed in the usual shorts, t-shirt, boots, gloves, and quietly leave my house. Once outside the early summer, nighttime breeze begins to soothe me. The sun set not long ago, so its probably before eleven. I stroll around town taking in the quiet nighttime atmosphere, with no real destination in mind.

A while later, I find myself walking along the wall of the village, glaring at it as if it had a say in keeping me here. My eyes land on one of the watch towers built into the walls when an idea strikes me. It probably won't get me in trouble and satiate my desire to climb things at the same time. I approach the tower, near the door at the base. Trying the knob, and to my surprise, I found it unlocked. I walked into the dark inside the tower, my eyes just barely making out the metal spiral staircase along the wall. I made my way up, only stumbling a couple times, to the lookout at the top. There was no one there, just an empty folding chair to greet me. Which probably should be worrisome, but I assume they just left to take a leak or something. I sat in the chair for myself and turned my gaze out into the dark heart of the forest and the soft glow of the moon and stars.

* * *

I jolted awake sometime later when I almost fell out of the chair. Quickly looking at my surroundings, having forgotten where I was for a moment. After remembering my late night stroll, and rubbing some of the sleep out of my eyes, I decided to make my way home to sleep in a bed and not a cheep folding chair.

After exiting the tower an odd sound drew my attention towards town. There was some loud noises and voices that had to be shouting if I could hear it from here. Curiosity changed to worry as I made my way to the source of the sound. Now that I could hear it, it definitely was shouting and fighting? I picked up my pace to the commotion and as I ran along my worry grew exponentially as I noticed I was running straight to my house.

As I skidded around a corner that lead to the front of my house and was greeted by a figure hunched over in the center of the street. I cautiously approached, trying to get details of the person. But when I got close enough to see, I let out a gasp at the scene around me. Hidden by the dark in street were bodies, all lying in pools of their own blood. I had never seen such a morbid scene like this before and was completely terrified. And at my horrified gasp, the figure rose and spun to face me with a blade aimed at me. Even if I was armed, there would be now way I could even hold onto a blade with how scared I was. Now that the figure was standing though, I could see face of the creator of this scene.

Recognizing me as well, he lowered his weapon and began limping to me. "Yumi!" Jessie shouted in relief, but all I could think was how in the hell could Jessie do this!? As he approached he tried reaching for my shoulder, but I jerked away from his touch a stepped back. "Wait Yumi, I can explain, you're in danger!" He pleaded while trying to catch his breath. I was too horrified to speak and it felt if I opened my mouth I would lose my dinner all over the pavement. "Just listen, It was Don Corneo!" I instantly recognized the name as one of my father's financial advisers. The only details I could remember though, was that he was a fat man with a bad hair cut. "He and a bunch of men stormed Godo's place," Jessie continued, "they are after your father."

I swallowed hard before shouting, "what?! How could he? Wait were is dad? Is he alright?!"

Jessie shook his head, "I am not sure where he is. I got an emergency message and ran here as fast as I could, but they had already stormed the building. And, this group of traitors tried to stop me." He said with venom and gestured to the bodies, though he grabbed my shoulder forcing me to look at him and away from the bodies. "Yumi, you have to listen to me now." He told me quietly but sternly, "I am going to get your father, but you need to get out of here. Leave town and don't come back. If either of us gets through this, we will find you."

"No!" I yelled in his face, "I can't abandon dad and I can't let you go in by yourself, you can hardly stand!" Jessie was heavily favoring his right leg. It looked like there is a huge slice in his left thigh, even in the dark. His upper body was not much better, covered various scrapes and cuts.

"Yumi listen," he continued just as stern but now with a touch of sadness. "If they are after your father, then they are after you too. I promised Godo a long time ago, that I would die before I let anyone harm you." He paused and took a deep breath, "I have to go help your father. I swore my life and my blade to the Kisaragi family, and I would not be able to live with myself if I ran away while your family is in danger." I could start to feel tears start pricking the corners of my eyes. "So you need go, I can't protect you like this, but if Godo is alive I could still help. If I get the chance, I will tell them I hid you somewhere in town. Then they won't immediately try searching outside the walls to give you a bit more time to get away."

The tears were threatening to spill from my eyes as I hugged Jessie. "Please don't go!" I yelled into his chest.

He returned my hug and held me for a moment before he whispered, "I'm sorry." He broke away and looked at me, face set with determination, "now you need to go." He backed away and said, "and, be safe Yumi."

As he turned I saw a small smile before he headed back to the house. The tears were falling freely now, feeling weak and alone. I flinched when I heard the fighting started anew with loud crashes, shouting, and gunfire. Closing my eyes and gathering what strength I had, then turned and ran. I ran as hard as I could away from fighting and the death, and didn't stop until I got to the gate through the wall and out into the wild.

I was out of breath and tears refused to stop pouring down my face. Looking back into the town, not sure what I was looking for, just hoping and thinking that perhaps I could do something if I were to go back. But, my hope was quickly destroyed when an explosion rang out and a pillar of fire erupted from the way I just came. All I could do was stare at the flames poking out from above the roofs. It felt as if someone ripped out my heart as I watched the flames. Knowing that had to be my home, and knowing that it had to mean my father and my best friend are dead.

When I finally wrenched my eyes from the blaze, I found myself moving to the gate. I didn't know why, I felt like I should just curl up on the ground and wait for death to find me, but my body kept moving on its own. I ended up going through the gate, along the wall, and following the base of the cliffs outside the wall. Until I came across a large, flat rock jutting out from the cliff-side and crawled into a small crevice beneath it I finally collapsed. Hugging my legs to my chest, I waited for the nightmare to end.


	3. Chapter 3

I woke up in pain. A headache, stiff back, shoulders hurt, and a sharp pain in my neck. And as soon as I remembered why I woke up under a rock, covered in dirt, my chest hurt. I didn't want to deal with anything, so I just curled back up trying to shut out everything from last night.

While I just lied there, too absorbed with the memories of last night, I wasn't thinking about the people would be hunting me. At least until I heard footsteps. I immediately began to panic, stuck under a rock with no escape route, all they would have to do is see or hear me. I clenched my eyes shut and tried to steady my breathing. All I was focused on was the sound footsteps getting louder and the feeling that my heart would beat its way out of my chest. I could hear talking then a reply, so there was more than one. A branch snapped, it had to be just beside the rock. I froze, holding my breath. I could even hear them complaining about having to search!

Then the voices got quieter. The footsteps were moving away! I let out held breath and relaxed my clenched muscles as I listened to the foot falls getting quieter. My heart was still beating like crazy, but this made me realize how unsafe I was. I had to get somewhere those traitors can't find me. I couldn't betray Jessie's last wish by getting caught and killed by those bastards.

Now that it is all quiet again, I slowly peeked outside of my crevice. The sun was high in the sky and the woods nearby were still and quiet. I stood up and stretched to relieve some pain and stiffness while keeping an eye on my surroundings. As I looked around I tried to think of the safest place I could get to in the middle of the day. The forest doesn't seem like a good option as people already passed by and I can't get anywhere near town. I sighed, not coming up with any ideas and started thinking the hole under the rock was actually my best option. I turned back to where I crawled out of when it hit me where I was and swore to myself for being an idiot. I looked up and started planning out the best route up the cliff-side.

* * *

The climb took a bit longer than usual as I tried to be quiet and keep out of sight. But, I reached the top with no issue and started looking for a good place to stay hidden. I am lucky that dad and Jessie are-were the only two who know how much I liked to climb up here. Of course thinking about them brought back thoughts of last night. I shook my head trying to force out those thoughts and continue looking for a place to lay low.

Eventually I found another rock to crawl under, but this time I gathered some plants and leaves to sleep on instead of solid rock. Thanks to survival class, I also could tell which plants and berries I found were safe to eat. And while I ate, I sat near the edge overlooking the town, while still being careful to stay hidden. I was too far away to see details, but from up here nothing seemed different really. The only thing visibly different was the smoldering black dot where home used to be. I went back to my new hole, leaving the rest of my snack and the sight behind.

I lied there the rest of the day finally letting my thoughts run wild while I fiddled with my semblance thread. Whenever I wanted to keep my hands busy I would practice different knots with my rope, even though I didn't really need to with it being my semblance. But it was comforting, especially right now. It was familiar and helped keep me occupied while I processed things. While I tied many different knots, there was one knot that caught my attention, one that made me think. It was the hangman's knot and when I saw it all I could think of was Don Corneo.

* * *

The next day I decided to watch the town. To try and see if I could come up with a way to get in unnoticed. The first thing that I noticed was the quarry business at the train yard seemed to be undisturbed. We didn't necessarily run it but being security for them, they couldn't really operate without us. So if they are still operating HE must have already taken over and giving commands. But I can't let my anger distract me, I told myself while gritting my teeth. It has to wait till I can get in and out without being seen.

* * *

At sunset I started my plan to get in. I used the route I found to get down the cliff, it had plenty of cover to get me down unseen in the evening light and get me inside the walls. Waiting an hour or two in the brush at the bottom, the sun finally completed its journey down and I used the dark to approach the buildings. From there it was just a matter of sticking to the shadows around the buildings.

My first destination I decided, was the general store. It had a whole section dedicated to wilderness survival. I moved quietly around to the store, and figuring that I am already wanted dead, breaking and entering wasn't a big deal. Also, the building itself was older and probably didn't have a high tech security system. I grabbed a lose chunk of concrete from a busted curb and moved quickly to the glass front doors. Slinging the chunk with all the force I could muster, it easily smashed through the the door's bottom pane of glass. The shattering of glass was a lot louder than I expected, especially in the still of the night.

Worried the sound would draw attention I moved quickly through the door frame and ran down the aisles, straight to where I remember the supplies being. I found the section easily, grabbed a large backpack/sleeping bag combo and filled it up. I decided to grab clothes, a box of survival essentials, water, and boxes of food to fill the rest of the bag. With that done I ran back out the door and around the corner to the back of the building. Just as I got around the back corner, I heard a car screeching to a stop out front. With that close of a call, I ran all the way back to the cliffs where I climbed down.

When I got back to the cliffs, I dropped the bag and slumped to the ground completely winded from running halfway across town with a heavy bag. After I caught my breath the next step was to wait till just before sunrise to start climbing again. But while I waited, I got to thinking. Its not all that late, I just assumed it would be later at this point. Feeling that I shouldn't let the night go to waste, I decided to speed up my plans.

I hid the bag at the bottom of the climb and went back into town. I made my way to the commercial part of town, being extra careful just in case they are still looking for whoever broke into the store. I arrived at the fenced off commercial district without problems. The main entrances would definitely be guarded, so I avoided them and went for a more direct approach. Hopping the fence was easy enough for me, hitting the ground on the other side I slipped in between the buildings and went to the overseer's office.

Passing through the area, I couldn't see any guards around. Probably because half of them were either killed or ran off the other night, I thought to myself feeling my anger start to rise. Finding the building was not difficult, it was smaller than the rest being a simple building meant for function and not comfort. Taking a deep breath to focus on the task, I made for the front door. Again to my surprise, this door was unlocked. The building was dark as I expected, but street lights made it navigable. The entrance was just like a secretary office, so I made my way past the main desk to the door behind assuming it was the boss' office.

As I entered the next room I immediately stopped in my tracks. Sitting behind the desk was a sleeping man with the soft glow of the computer reflecting off his pale skin, betraying his identity. He was a large man wearing a tacky red suit with a bright yellow undershirt. His short blonde hair was shaved into some kind of curly mo-hawk, showing off a heart tattoo on the top of his head. He was a fat man with a bad haircut. It was Don Corneo.

I couldn't believe my eyes or my luck. I was hoping for an address or at least a phone number, but having the bastard asleep right in front of me was completely different. I released the breath I didn't realize I was holding and slowly crept forward. As I reached the front of the desk my toe hit something causing it to knock against the metal of the desk. I froze again as Corneo snorted and rubbed his nose, but stayed asleep. Thanking my luck again I looked at what I kicked and immediately felt my anger flare.

I reached down and picked up what leaned against the desk. It was my weapon, Conformer, a large four point shuriken about a meter across, looking a bit like a pointed 'x'. With detachable and collapse-able points, collapsing in a way similar to a hand fan and came together as one blade. Connected in the center by a hole and at the pommel of each blade. I also fondly remember father helping construct it with me and how proud he was when it was finished. I gripped it tight fighting off tears, thinking how this piece of shit had it sitting in his office like some trophy.

I detached one blade and crept around the desk to stand above the sleeping man. When I looked down on him, all I could feel was pain and hatred. Knowing he was responsible for killing dad and Jessie. Clenching the handle of the single blade so hard it hurt. Raising it high above my head like a dagger. Then, with all my strength and all my hatred, drove it deep into the center of Don Corneo's chest.

His eyes shot open and immediately began to panic. Coughing up blood, trying to call for help, and flailing around attempting to remove the blade. I jerked my hand away, removing the blade, letting the blood flow freely. He flopped out of his chair onto the floor while trying to hold his chest closed as he gurgled for help. I couldn't help but grin at this pathetic display. Jessie died with his head held high and I know father would never beg for mercy from these pigs. I left him to bleed out on the floor and sprinted out of the building. With my weapon in hand and heart lighter than its been in days, I knew I could handle whatever life has in store for me.


	4. Chapter 4

I sprinted across town again, back to the cliffs, and my stash. Hardly slowing I pulled the backpack from its spot, slipped my weapon inside, slung it over my shoulder, and scrambled up the cliff side. The first rays from the morning sun giving me just enough light to see the hand holds.

When I reached the safety of the summit once again the adrenaline had completely worn off. Collapsing with exhaustion onto my hands and knees, I was greeted with the sight of dried blood coating my arms. I threw off my pack and looked down at myself, the blood had also covered the entire front of my clothes. Now that I could think clearer, the sight made me sick. I quickly stripped out of my blood stained clothes down to my underwear. Then using the cleaner spots of the ruined clothes, I scrubbed what blood I could off of my hands and arms. When I was rid of most of the gory substance, I grabbed a spare set from my bag. The stolen clothes were nothing special just a grey T-shirt, dark green zip up hoodie, and black shorts.

Once dressed I found myself looking out over the town. Seeing it now compared to just a couple days ago made my new reality sink in. I used to see it as a safe place, even if most of the people there didn't really care about me. Now it seems more like a graveyard. The only two people that really mattered to me, my father and Jessie, are dead. I don't even know what happened to their bodies. And on top of that, I even created another body for this new graveyard. Those I thought of as allies, or at least employees, for my father are still most likely trying to kill me. I know I wanted to leave to see the world, but I had always planned to come back home.

Tearing my gaze from the town to the brush inhabiting the area with me, I tried to accepted my situation. I am officially homeless and a murderer. Knowing there is nothing left here, I grabbed the map out of my bag, got my things together, and started walking. Focusing on where I was going and pushing aside my welling emotions, I left behind the bloodied clothes and the place I thought was home.

* * *

It wasn't until sunset when I realized exactly how exhausted I was. I walked all day just focusing on anything that didn't have to do with the past few days. I followed the cliffs for a few miles where I found an easy slope down into the trees and from there, using the map, started heading to the next closest town. Noticed too late that I was too focused on moving forward. I dropped my things at the base of the closest tree, unrolled the sleeping bag, and practically collapsed. Using the bag as a pillow, I fell asleep on top of the sleeping bag and the tree roots.

In the morning I found myself the second most sore I have ever been, but the added hunger helped to make me very miserable. I had to stop myself from eating an entire box of food, trying to make up for the lack of a real meal recently. While munching away, I realized that in my haste to sleep that I didn't take Grimm into account. I am in the middle of the forest after all, I suppose I was lucky nothing found me, but the last thing I felt was lucky. I wouldn't have been able to defend myself as my weapon was not easily accessible inside the backpack. The only probable reason my emotions didn't attract anything was because I was still relatively close to town, where there would be more people who were most likely upset by all this as well. After my over zealous breakfast and pointing out my own mistakes, I plotted out my path for the day. Before leaving I made sure my weapon was easy to grab by placing it in the outside straps of the backpack, and set off.

Today I made sure to stop for rest as I made my way through the lightly wooded forest. At night I kept my weapon on hand and didn't light a fire so I wouldn't attract Grimm, even if it was chilly and might let normal animals wander close. I still refused to allow myself to think during this time, instead I distracted myself with the nature around me. Later the next day I came across the railroad leading from Utai to Vale. This was a relief, making it easy to walk and I wouldn't get lost. Of course if a train passed through I would hide in the tree line, but that wouldn't be a problem. Before starting down the rails I decided to take a quick rest stop. Off to the side of the tracks, I set my pack down to get a snack and water. When finished, I had my bag in hand and was about to start walking again, but the sound of a gun being cocked stopped me in my tracks.

"Hold it right there," a male voice said sternly behind me. "Turn around slowly and don't try anything or I'll shoot." I turned slowly to face whoever was threatening me. The first thing I noticed was the rifle he was holding and pointing at me. The next thing was the security uniform with my family crest on his chest pocket. "Now hand over your weapon," he demanded, holding out his left hand.

As I gripped the handle, I knew this would be my best and only chance to get away. With my semblance, I put a line through the center ring in my weapon. When it was free from my bag I quickly flung the blade at his chest. He easily leaned out of the way so it just grazed his arm, but it was enough to move where his gun was pointing. Dropping the bag, I turned and sprinted into the trees, pulling my weapon back with my thread.

Just after I passed the first trees shots rang out. The shot just barely missed, grazing my aura. As I ran I kept weaving around the trees to keep out of his gun's line of sight. My legs began to burn all too quickly from my days on the run and his heavy footfalls grew closer and closer. I tried to push myself to go faster, but it was no use. He tackled me, almost knocking the wind out of me, and made me drop my weapon.

"Stop resisting! I am supposed to bring you back alive, but if you keep struggling-" he shouted trying hold me and get his rifle pointed at me. But, didn't get to finish when I used his left arm that was around my neck, to roll him over my shoulder. As he flipped onto the ground his rifle slipped out of his right hand, onto the ground. He rolled over and scrambled on all fours reaching for his weapon. Seeing my opening, I jumped onto his back.

I tried hold him down on his stomach, but he was much larger and kept moving to his gun. Panicking, I did the only thing I could think of to stop him. I made a rope between my hands and pulled it hard around his neck like a garrote. He tried pulling it away from his neck, but when that failed he tried shaking me off or elbow me. I pulled even harder lifting his torso off the ground. This caused him to make a choked, gurgling sound as his struggles became more frantic. I looked away and tried not to listen, but I didn't let up the pressure. I kept my gaze averted as the sound slowly quieted and the jerking from the line began to stop.

I only looked back when he was absolutely still. His torso's dead wight was hanging limp from the garrote. With no struggling, arms hanging limp to his sides, completely lifeless. I dispelled my rope and his body collapsed face first to the ground. My families crest on his back staring back at me. I scrambled backwards away from the scene till I tripped and fell. With my gaze ripped away from the body now, I felt the urge to run away. I quickly searched for Conformer where I was tackled, making sure not to look at the fresh corpse. I found it soon enough and made my way back to the train tracks, which was easy enough as I didn't get very far.

After I got back to the rails and got my backpack, I headed the opposite direction of Utai and the body in the woods. I probably would have ran if my legs could handle it, but walking would have to suffice in getting me away from what happened. Now I have another terrible thing to try and forget. Even if he did try and shoot me I still murdered him, it was either me or him. He could have let me be, but he came after me. This was the argument going through my mind as I continued to escape to somewhere.


	5. Chapter 5

I could only walk for a couple hours before there was not enough light to see anymore. I settled just off the tracks, but didn't get too comfortable. I was too worried more people would come searching this road to get any real rest. The town was not very far however, so I figured that I could get there even if I was tired. That night was long but thankfully uneventful. The morning, on the other hand, was a different matter. Shortly after I set out I ran into an Ursa.

I quickly unfolded and threw Conformer with a line attached to slice it and tangle it simultaneously. The first throws only had shallow cuts, but kept it from charging while it tried to grab my weapon. The line would wrap around the Ursa and trees as I would keep throwing and catching it. Hours of practice are what let me throw Conformer, have it return with help of my line, and grab its center to catch it without losing any fingers. After a handful of throws the Ursa started to figure out that if it could get to me, the weapon would stop as well. It tried to charge but my wires held it back, the trees it wrapped around groaning slightly. Noticing my lines it tried to claw and chew through, but with little to no effect. With it immobile, I threw Conformer as hard as I could straight at its skull. The metal tip breaking through the Ursa's skull with a loud crack, and planting itself deep in its head.

Now dead it fell against my lines, keeping it upright with limbs dangling. As I walked over to pull out Conformer I noticed that I actually felt kind of relaxed. It was calming using my weapon for what it was intended for. It was like I was back practicing again or taking down a Grimm for a school exam. I freed Conformer with a few hard pulls and dispelled the wires letting the dissipating Ursa flop to the ground. The calm may have only been fleeting as the weight of my backpack and sore body returned my mind to the present situation, but it was nice while it lasted.

* * *

Mid-day, I could finally see the town's walls over the tops of some of the trees. That is probably why I came across that Ursa, it was hanging around where there are people. It didn't look like I would reach it till around sunset though.

Finally reaching the tree line just outside of the town, I could get a good look at it. There was a good 20 meters between the tree line and the outer walls of the town. The town itself was on a bit of rise keeping it up above the trees. The walls looked very similar to the ones at Utai just not as large. I could see the large, metal main gate from where I was standing. Above the gate was a look out post, and to the side was a rusty sign with, what looked like, the town's name; Gonga Village. It was annoying how it was not labeled on the map, but it's not like I had time to worry about it. And speaking of worry, from here I could not see if anyone is in the watch tower, but I doubt I could afford letting anyone see me, especially if they ask questions. It also would not surprise me if the family had people working here as well.

I decided to hang out in the trees until night fall and try to sneak in. I found a good spot where I could see most of what was around me and I still felt hidden. I settled in and had a snack, noticing I was a bit more than halfway through my supplies. And after sitting for a bit, started to nod off.

I was jolted awake when my head slipped off to the side of the tree I was leaning against to see, well not much. Tonight being pitch black without the moon out and some clouds. I tried to be careful getting out of my hiding spot with my things, but still ending up stumbling out of the forest. At night, Gonga looked a bit like a smoldering crater or volcano with no lights on the dark, outside walls, and the orange lights shining up from the town itself. The entrance was lit up showing off the man made structure and where to avoid searching eyes.

I made my way up the gentile incline and to the dark walls easily, right by one of the support pillars. I set down my bag against the vertical stone then tied one of my lines to the shoulder straps and the other end to my belt loop, leaving a lot slack. Next I pulled out and unfolded Conformer and tied another line to its center ring. It obviously was not made to be a grappling hook, but it should be sturdy enough for the job. The throw up and over the wall was easy and it didn't make too loud of a clang when the metal hit stone on the other side. I pulled the line tight, wedging the line where the pillar met the flat of the wall, hoping that would allow two or three of Conformer's points to catch. Gripping the line tight I hoisted myself up and my weapon held fast.

At the top of the wall I made sure to grab Conformer before it could fall while keeping my body pressed close to the stone, trying to stand out as little as possible. I couldn't see to check for damage to my weapon but it folded up just fine, so I tied it to one of my belt loops. Shifting focus to the other line tied to my waist, I pulled my bag up to me and deposited it on the other side and dispelled the line.

Shifting from lying on the wall to sitting, I pushed myself off the wall. A short fall and a tidy roll, I found myself on the inside of the walls. Quickly snatching up my bag I turned to take in my surroundings. It seemed that I landed in someone's backyard with their neighbors close by. Nearly all house lights were off, which was good. Figuring I was unseen, I moved between the buildings to the lit up street.

The street lamps were old and yellowed, but let me see the various houses lining the street. They all seemed to be in various states of disrepair with a couple being just terrible. Picking a direction I thought would lead to the center of town, I strode off, keeping an eye out for people.

Moving across town I noticed that nearly every building was falling apart. The only places that seemed alive were the handful of bars which, when I noticed they were open, I gave a wide berth to be safe. I eventually went from a residential area to a more business section of town. Places here seemed to follow the same run down look as everywhere else, just with more old machinery around. The depressing state of this place gave me the fleeting thought that I should do something for this town someday. But, that thought was destroyed as quickly as it came. In its stead I came up with a plan to keep moving, as this place was far too close to Utai.

I followed the road with the most machines and parts around the shops and arrived at the fenced off train yard. The fence was easy to deal with, just a quick climb to get over. The yard was probably the biggest part of the town as there needed to be room to park and switch cars around. It also allowed the main rail line, that ran from Vale to Vacuo, to be split, with one track heading to Utai quarry. The town seemed to be made as a temporary stop to manage trains, check for anything wrong, and give any repairs needed.

I moved through the lines of parked train cars, looking for a train that should to be leaving next. Also making sure to keep an eye out for the late night workers and security. It didn't take long to find a train that was lined up at the gate leading out of town and looked ready to go. The next step would be sneaking on board. It was a fairly long cargo train with plenty of box cars. I hunched down between a couple parked cars nearby to observe and see if there would be an easy way to get on.

There were a couple of workers milling around the train. One worker was checking the cars for problems, while the other was standing at the engine talking with a security officer. The car checker looked over the outside of each car to make sure everything was secure. He was about half way along the train and heading toward the front, so I quietly made my down the line. Using the parked train I was hiding between to get to the rear cars.

Making sure to keep out of sight, I stopped at the end of the parked cars. They stopped near the second to last car of the ready train. I looked over the latch that kept the doors closed on the car nearby and noticed that it did not have a lock. They probably just rely on the security at the train depots to prevent people from jumping on, because opening a latch on a moving train would be very difficult. Checking that the workers were preoccupied down the line, I then crossed over to the ready boxcar. Slowly moving the handle, trying to stay quiet, it unlatched with a clang. I quickly checked to see if it caught anyone's attention, and seeing that they didn't notice, I started to open the door. It rolled open to the side so all I would have to do is push it. But, it was rather heavy and had metal wheels so it was not easy to move or stop it from making noise. So I moved it just enough to shove my backpack inside. Then using the door handle, I pulled myself up and squeezed through the opening.

I was just barely able to get through and accidentally hit my weapon on the side of the car while I was at it. Worried the noise would catch someone's attention, I quickly pushed the door closed. Realizing that there was no way to latch the door from the inside, I looked around the dark interior of the car. I could just make out the dark edges of the boxy cargo with the help of the little bit of light creeping through various cracks throughout the car. It was almost entirely full, just enough room for someone to get in to start unloading. The only place there was space was between the roof of the car and the tops of the crates. But, it would be better than just standing in front of the door, waiting for someone to open it. So I tossed my bag up first and climbed my way up after it. I crawled over the tops of the cargo as far as possible away from the door, dragging my bag along. Reaching the far wall, I figured the only thing left to do would be to get comfortable until the train gets to wherever it's going, or until I get caught.


End file.
